Issue

Comic Relief is a major charity based in the UK with a vision of a just world, free from poverty. One of the issues it addresses is malaria which kills one child every 30 seconds, about 3,000 children every day. Malaria is preventable and, with the right actions, deaths from the disease could be stopped in our lifetimes.

Our work

Along with our partner, Skating Panda, we worked with Comic Relief to create a global message platform about a powerful 90-minute film made for television, Mary & Martha stars Hilary Swank (Oscar/ Academy Award winner) and Brenda Blethyn (BAFTA/Golden Globe winner) as two women who both lose sons to malaria.

The film is written by Richard Curtis (Four Weddings and a Funeral and Notting Hill) and is directed by Phillip Noyce (Rabbit‐Proof Fence). The film screened in the UK on BBC One in March 2013, on HBO in the US, and in over 30 countries on or near World Malaria Day, 2013. Our messaging was used in strategic promotional activity to extend the film's reach and raise awareness of malaria.

Results

Messages highlighting the issue of malaria in connection with the film raised the profile of malaria and malaria prevention in the lead up to World Malaria Day 2013. As a result, many more influential people have a better of understanding about the disease and how to fight it

SERVICES

• Strategic Planning
• Branding & Communications

 “It’s never easy pulling together a global messaging platform with so many stakeholders involved, but Skating Panda and Global Change Network managed to assemble messages that are complex and rich in content, yet simple and straightforward to use.  Importantly, they met the criteria of all global partners – and we ended up with a well-researched and vital document.”

- Cathy Mahoney, former Head of Public Education, Comic Relief